Taylor Swift’s First Instagram Post and Comments After Her Joe Alwyn Breakup Say a Lot

News of Taylor Swift and Joe Alwyn’s breakup came out on April 8, during a weekend where Swift had a break from her Eras tour. Swift went back to work on Thursday, performing three back-to-back shows in Tampa. But all of the singer’s moves since the reports broke, from her first easter egg-packed New York City outing near Cornelia Street to her first Instagram post after the breakup, has revealed a lot about her current headspace.

Swift is publicly keeping things business as usual—but she’s not acting like nothing happened either. Here, a breakdown of her activity, which reveals how she is moving forward after her six-year romance with Alwyn.

Swift’s first Instagram post after the split and her Tampa shows signal she’s grateful and future-oriented.

As Cosmopolitan pointed out, Swift kept her social media professionally focused. Swift expressed her gratitude to her fans, writing, “Still buzzing from those 3 shows in Tampa!!! Thank you to the unforgettably epic crowds and to @aarondessner for coming out to play twice with me, we’ve been dreaming about that for so long!! So grateful for the memories we’re making on this tour 🥲” Over 5.2 million fans liked the post, which featured Getty photos of her onstage in Tampa.

This is in line with what a source close to Swift told People too about how she is doing post-split, which the source called “not dramatic.”

“She doesn’t have anything bad to say about Joe,” the source said. “They just grew apart. Taylor is staying very focused on her tour right now.”

The fact that Swift dressed symbolically and had a rare paparazzi outing in New York City days before her show signaled her desire for the public to know she is moving forward—and “can still make the whole place shimmer.”

It’s worth noting that Swift knows how to fly under the radar when she wants to, and does so most of the time. It’s how she and Alwyn were able to keep so much of their romance private in the first place. But when Swift wants to be seen, she knows how she do it—and send a message. Swift’s New York City dinner at Via Carota in the West Village on April 10, a stone’s throw away from Cornelia Street, had multiple clues for fans to take in.

One: she is not hiding at home. She is in good spirits, getting dressed up, and spending time with friends.

Two: Swift hasn’t lost the ability to walk on Cornelia Street and enjoy New York City. Despite singing in “Cornelia Street,” rumored to be about the start of her and Alwyn’s romance in 2016, that “I hope I never lose you, hope it never ends / I’d never walk Cornelia Street again,” Swift had dinner nearby.

Three: Swift likely wanted to be seen: Note that while Swift was photographed at the dinner, Jennifer Lawrence went too and wasn’t papped.

Four: Swift’s outfit included a bejeweled butterfly, symbolizing rebirth. Clothes can say a lot—especially when Swift is dressing in literal easter eggs. Swift’s now-sold-out butterfly jeans by Area could be a little message to fans that she sees this time in her life as an exciting new beginning. The fact they are jeweled also is a handy homage to her song “Bejeweled,” which is about Swift reclaiming herself amid a dying romance.

Before going to Tampa, Swift was filmed leaving a recording studio in New York City, hinting she is still working—possibly even on new music about the breakup.

Swift wasn’t just photographed going out to dinner with friends during her New York City visit. A fan recorded her leaving Electric Lady Studios, a sure sign that Swift is very much recording music. Swift keeps her projects under wraps, so while she could be working more on her first albums’ re-recordings, she could also just as easily be working on new material.

Swift was also seen filming a music video in Liverpool the week news of her breakup surfaced.

Swift kept references to her Alwyn breakup at a minimum during her Tampa shows, but still hinted that the breakup happened—and these shows have been helping her.

Swift told the crowd during her first show back in Tampa, “So we have a lot to catch up on, don’t we?” It was her most direct reference to the breakup. But Swift brought out new outfits, guests, and discussed candidly to the crowd how much these concerts have been helping her. Multiple Taylor Swift fan accounts pointed out that, during her show in Tampa on Saturday, she told the crowd, “I’m loving this tour. It’s become my entire personality. I’ve always loved putting on shows, loved that connection…knowing you have felt the same way is the most comforting feeling in the world for me…I need you guys very much for my well-being.”

A fan on TikTok also noted that Swift responded with a thumbs up with a fan held up a sign that said “you ok?” while she was performing “Delicate” (one of her many songs believed to be about Alwyn). That sign itself is a reference to her “You Belong With Me” music video where her character held up a sign that asked “you ok?” to her love interest.

In the week leading up to her Tampa shows, sources connected to Swift spoke to outlets and made it clear the breakup was Swift’s decision, and she really is doing exactly what she has been putting out there publicly: putting everything into her tour and music.

In the days after news of the breakup came out, a clear picture was gradually painted by sources connected to the couple that the end was peaceful, Swift-led, and came down to career and personality differences.

Swift ended things with Alwyn, a source told Entertainment Tonight directly on April 11. “Taylor and Joe are in totally different places in their lives right now,” the source said. “It was more of Taylor’s decision to break up, but both of them realized that they weren’t completely right for one another. They had been together for such a long time and were spending so much time together, but their personalities were just too different. Joe is more introverted, shy, and quiet. She’s very focused on touring and her career right now. Taylor has nothing but respect for Joe and really loved and enjoyed all the time and memories she shared with him. They had a deep connection and she really appreciated that. She hopes they can be friendly in the future.”

A source close to Swift and Alwyn told People on April 10 that Alwyn had trouble with Swift’s booming career. “Joe has struggled with Taylor’s level of fame and the attention from the public,” the source said. “The differences in their personalities have also become harder to ignore after years together. They’ve grown apart.”

Daily Mail went one step further, with a source claiming on April 10 that Swift’s career being bigger than Alwyn’s played a significant role in the two parting ways. “It’s been hard for Joe trying to make it in Hollywood and not quite becoming leading man material while dating one of the most famous women in the world over the last six years,” the source alleged. “It was easier during the pandemic when it was just the two of them, but once things returned to normal, Taylor Swift the superstar emerged, and their differences were even more apparent. They really made a go of it and tried everything they could but ultimately were unable to save the relationship.”

Senior News and Strategy Editor

Alyssa Bailey is the senior news and strategy editor at ELLE.com, where she oversees coverage of celebrities and royals (particularly Meghan Markle and Kate Middleton). She previously held positions at InStyle and Cosmopolitan. When she’s not working, she loves running around Central Park, making people take #ootd pics of her, and exploring New York City.